One of those nights...

Jay Barracato

Jay Barracato

Graduate Student
Jan 11, 2011
1,528
4
38
Solomons MD
1. Drummers: if you ever want to play in a room bigger than momma's basement, you might want to set up your kit with at least a little room for mics.

2. Drummers: if you tune your kit to sound like a cardboard box full of empty cans what we are going to get through the system is loud cardboard and cans.

3. Vocalists: Learn the words. If you must have a cheatsheet make it big enough to see without totally bending over.

4. Guitarists: If you must feedback your way in and out of every song, by the end of the night I am going to retune your rig with a baseball bat.

5.Guitarists: If you aren't playing Shea stadium on a regular basis, sell the stack and get a combo.

That is all for now.
 
Re: One of those nights...

6. Keyboard Players: Please get all of your patches level. Or learn to use the volume pedal correctly.
 
Re: One of those nights...

7. Keyboard players: check for blown speakers in your amp before you leave the house, and bring something else to the show.

8. Guitarists: tuning is always good. Learn how to do it, and not at solo volume.
 
Re: One of those nights...

Gary Weller said:
6. Keyboard Players: Please get all of your patches level. Or learn to use the volume pedal correctly.
Click to expand...

The keyboard patches were one of the good things about this night.

So what are we on? 9 I think.

9. Guitarists: There is a reason the entire dance floor is packed EXCEPT directly in front of where you are playing.
 
11. When we tell you we MUST be off the field by 3 that doesn't mean your soundcheck goes till 3. That means soundcheck ends at 2:40 like we told you it did. Nothing like prepping a post game show during the start of batting practice.

Sent from my neural implant
 
Re: One of those nights...

When doing a festival-unless you are the headliner-I really don't care what time you start-or how long you take to setup-HOWEVER you WILL STOP playing when you are supposed to. You DO NOT get to screw up the rest of the schedule because you want to get your carpets and incense just right--------------------------
 
Re: One of those nights...

Ivan Beaver said:
When doing a festival-unless you are the headliner-I really don't care what time you start-or how long you take to setup-HOWEVER you WILL STOP playing when you are supposed to. You DO NOT get to screw up the rest of the schedule because you want to get your carpets and incense just right--------------------------
Click to expand...

+ 1,000
 
Re: One of those nights...

I did a show recently where the band was a alternative rock band and went to do soundcheck and I dialed in all the instruments and when I told them to play something together to let me see how it sounded. here is what it sounded like.

1 It sounded like Pink/White noise
2. The drummer was hitting the cymbals and they were over dominating everything else. ( No Overheads)
3. The lead guitarist's distortion on his guitar sounded like the wind blowing is was so distorted. and the bass player you couldn't hardly hear him.
4 vocals same thing , couldn't hardly hear them.

I told them what was wrong and They looked at me kinda like i was crazy for a min. and then one of there girlfriends looked back there and told me , They think they are stars. and my initial thought was OH DEAR. with my hand on my fourhead.
 
So I am in the same room, with a nice crowd, mixing a series called "Rock of all ages". The shows are 4 bands each playing 40 minutes of music. All the bands are made up of teenagers. About 70% of the music has been original.

So far tonight all three bands have allowed me to set the volumes on their amps and have listened to why I was setting the amps that way and where I was placing the amps.

There may be some hope for the future.
 
Re: One of those nights...

Vocalists: Just looking in the general vicinity of the mic will not get your voice loud enough in the PA. You actually need to modulate some air towards it.
 
Re: One of those nights...

Oh yeah , and i almost forgot , on the Post #10 . the bass drum sounded like he had the head on there but wasnt tightened at all. Mainly like someone earlier said , a Cardboard box. NO Low end anywhere on that bass drum!!!!!! UGH!!!!!
 
Re: One of those nights...

Last Christmas, at an outdoor carols, I had a Radial J48 on each output of the digital piano. On some patches the keyboard player got decent level in his monitor and on other patches almost nothing. Turns out someone had bumped the polarity invert button on one of the J48's and the more "mono" piano patches were cancelling to almost nothing in his mono monitor send. Fortunately we caught it during rehearsals.

Jay Barracato said:
The keyboard patches were one of the good things about this night.
Click to expand...
 
Re: One of those nights...

Guitar players- yes the amp is supplied, no its not your fender 2x12 but im sure it makes a very similar noise.... Step 2 now that you've heard it , must you go through every patch, pedal, and preset in your pedal board for 30 minutes of changeover. Turn it on, set the level, go get a drink....frick.

Drummers- once again, yes the kit is supplied but it is normal for you to bring your snare and cymbals.

Bassists. Just because its an svt 8x10 still doesn't mean it should be loud enough so that i don't need you in the pa still at 120'
 
Re: One of those nights...

Mike Caldwell said:
- Guitarist / any musican whos equipment uses batteries and a cable. Make sure both are good.

- Guitarist / any musican whos equipment uses a cable, know the difference between a speaker cable and a insturment cable.
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Just to add to this thought.... BRING A CABLE
Opening act yesterday, supposed Nashville "up and commer".
Shows up with acoustic side guy and ipod. The acoustic player comes without a 1/4" cable, then he asks if I have an apple sync cable for his ipod to computer. Then asks if I have guitar stands and then sound checks with the ipod, but then switches to computer (different volume). Then they produce the talents guitar ( no plug in.... ugh what year is this again?). So I have to mic the guitar which the side guy acoustic player then later states "don't worry about putting it in the mix too much, it's more of a prop"... F*CK !! So the singer then grabs the mic, "fitty cent" style, thumb to chin, ball completely cupped, it was Allan Jackson dressed on the outside with rapper within...jezus....
Oh yeah - then states that he needs reverb in the monitors because he was out late until 6AM partying in another town.... ugh like that is going to help your performance sir... get a clue...
 
Re: One of those nights...

Band: Please update your rider & Stage plot from 2 years ago, or at least notify me of changes when I talk to you. I don't like setting up your wedges ahead of time then having to strike them when you show up with a rack of in ears if I already don't have enough time to set you up because you showed up 20 mins before your set time.
 
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